diff --git a/lib/forever.js b/lib/forever.js
index 26201081..986afc40 100755
--- a/lib/forever.js
+++ b/lib/forever.js
@@ -17,7 +17,8 @@ var fs = require('fs'),
     utile = require('utile'),
     winston = require('winston'),
     mkdirp = utile.mkdirp,
-    async = utile.async;
+    async = utile.async,
+    configUtils = require('./util/config-utils');
 
 var forever = exports;
 
@@ -49,7 +50,7 @@ forever.initialized  = false;
 forever.kill         = require('forever-monitor').kill;
 forever.checkProcess = require('forever-monitor').checkProcess;
 forever.root         = process.env.FOREVER_ROOT || path.join(process.env.HOME || process.env.USERPROFILE || '/root', '.forever');
-forever.config       = new nconf.File({ file: path.join(forever.root, 'config.json') });
+forever.config       = configUtils.initConfigFile(forever.root);
 forever.Forever      = forever.Monitor = require('forever-monitor').Monitor;
 forever.Worker       = require('./forever/worker').Worker;
 forever.cli          = require('./forever/cli');
@@ -334,22 +335,9 @@ forever.load = function (options) {
     forever._debug();
   }
 
-  //
-  // Syncronously create the `root` directory
-  // and the `pid` directory for forever. Although there is
-  // an additional overhead here of the sync action. It simplifies
-  // the setup of forever dramatically.
-  //
-  function tryCreate(dir) {
-    try {
-      fs.mkdirSync(dir, '0755');
-    }
-    catch (ex) { }
-  }
-
-  tryCreate(forever.config.get('root'));
-  tryCreate(forever.config.get('pidPath'));
-  tryCreate(forever.config.get('sockPath'));
+  configUtils.tryCreateDir(forever.config.get('root'));
+  configUtils.tryCreateDir(forever.config.get('pidPath'));
+  configUtils.tryCreateDir(forever.config.get('sockPath'));
 
   //
   // Attempt to save the new `config.json` for forever
diff --git a/lib/util/config-utils.js b/lib/util/config-utils.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..4bc35a43
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/util/config-utils.js
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+var path = require('path');
+var fs = require('fs');
+var nconf = require('nconf');
+
+function initConfigFile(foreverRoot) {
+  return new nconf.File({file: path.join(foreverRoot, 'config.json')});
+}
+
+//
+// Synchronously create the `root` directory
+// and the `pid` directory for forever. Although there is
+// an additional overhead here of the sync action. It simplifies
+// the setup of forever dramatically.
+//
+function tryCreateDir(dir) {
+  try {
+    if (!fs.existsSync(dir)) {
+      fs.mkdirSync(dir, '0755');
+    }
+  }
+  catch (error) {
+    throw new Error('Failed to create directory '+dir+":" +error.message);
+  }
+}
+
+module.exports = {
+  initConfigFile: initConfigFile,
+  tryCreateDir: tryCreateDir
+};
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index a221bf05..cb7e7568 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -36,7 +36,9 @@
   },
   "devDependencies": {
     "broadway": "~0.3.6",
+    "chai": "^4.2.0",
     "eventemitter2": "0.4.x",
+    "mocha": "^3.5.3",
     "moment": "^2.23.0",
     "request": "2.x.x",
     "vows": "0.7.x"
diff --git a/test/util/config-utils-spec.js b/test/util/config-utils-spec.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..3f144e89
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/util/config-utils-spec.js
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+var fs = require('fs');
+var configUtils = require('../../lib/util/config-utils');
+var expect = require('chai').expect;
+
+describe('config-utils', () => {
+  describe('tryCreateDir', () => {
+    it('happy path', () => {
+      expect(() => {
+        configUtils.tryCreateDir('happypath');
+      }).to.not.throw();
+
+      expect(fs.existsSync('happypath')).to.equal(true);
+      fs.rmdirSync('happypath');
+    });
+
+    it('throws an error on invalid directory', () => {
+      expect(() => {
+        configUtils.tryCreateDir('');
+      }).to.throw(/Failed to create directory :ENOENT: no such file or directory, mkdir/);
+    });
+
+    it('does not fail when creating directory that already exists', () => {
+      expect(() => {
+        configUtils.tryCreateDir('dummy');
+        configUtils.tryCreateDir('dummy');
+      }).to.not.throw();
+      fs.rmdirSync('dummy');
+    });
+  });
+});